How to Make a Very Long Neck Look Shorter

Hello Imogen. I very love your blog articles, great thanks for them! I have too long neck, so I am looking for advice for a very long neck. I know, that higher necklines are great, but I am not sure about earrings design. Please, would you so kindly, can you tell me what kind of earrings are great for long neck? Beata

Long necks are considered quite an elegant feature, so many would rather a longer rather than shorter neck. But if you feel your neck is just too long, here are a few tips to help you make it appear more balanced.

As you mentioned, higher necklines work well with a long neck, and adding a scarf is another way of making it appear shorter, particularly if you tie it around your neck. Also consider your hairstyle, cropped styles will highlight the length of your neck.

As far as earrings go:

Wear wider earring, rather than slim earrings. The width will help to take up some of the space and won’t exaggerate your length, instead they will make it look a little shorter and more balanced.

12 Comments

Imogen thank you very much for your very illustrative answer! I have one more question – what about combination of very long neck and long decolletage? I think, very high necklines are not good in this case and better are slightly lower (or combination of the right neckllne and necklace), do you agree?

Ive a long neck but crew necks doesnt flatter my slight broad square shoulders with or without a scarf.

The only way I found that help combat this is pairing the crew neck with a flared skirt and either high vamp flats (need the calf thickening effect on my long “chicken legs”! LoL 😉 ) or Tall Boots during cold weather. But one problem is that many crew-necks are a bit boxy so this type outfit “steal” the waist defination of my tiny 24″ waist making me look a bit boxy overall, despite having a very thin bone structure. :-/ Strange how clothes can change your bodyshape!

I really love crew neck sweaters (pullover styles to layer over collar shirts) but they dont seems to like me. XD

I also dislike crew necks and turtlenecks because I just hate the way they feel (and look). I have sloping shoulders to add to the long neck issue – the problems just seem to add up.

I find that a collared shirt is best, but a scoop neck or a v-neck with a choker-length necklace (as long as the neck is not too wide open) also looks great. Even though they are not in style, a little shoulder pad, just enough for structure, also helps.

Imogen’s advice on earrings is right on the money. A little fullness in the earrings just below the lobe seems to give the right balance.

For the record, my parents always thought my long neck was beautiful. I never perceived of it as a flaw until later in life. Swans, unite!

Imogen, my daughter and I will benefit from this timely advice. We wear turtlenecks in cold weather, and scarves. The advice about the earrings is a relief because they do fill in the gap between the jaw and the shoulder. I like the gal who said, “Swans unite.” I have read that a long neck connotes extreme beauty in Japan.